October 23rd – Strategic mistake. I left Leicester early, and hopped on the first train out of Birmingham I could. I ended up cycling from Shenstone against a fearsome, grinding headwind. Although the lanes are taking on the beauty of autumn at last, this was a hard ride and I didn’t really appreciate the dry, sunny ride at the time.
So far, this has been a week of very grim commuting.
March 7th – Have Centrocard, will travel. The art of cycle commuting by train is to consider the wind. I can cycle back home to Brownhills from a number of stations which all take about the same time. Bloxwich, Walsall, Lichfield, Blake Street, Shenstone. That covers pretty much all wind-direction bases. Today, there was a northwesterly that was quite strong, so I got off the train at Bloxwich Station, and cycled back up through Pelsall. I don’t do that very often, but this week seems quite weary and I hadn’t the will to battle sidewinds on the A461.
Passing the memorial garden in Bloxwich, I took my first good look at the notorious fountain. Removed, restored and painted an alarming shade of green, the lack of water is the bane of Stuart ‘The Edditer’ Williams life. Whilst the fountain itself is clearly a historical period piece and part of the heritage of the town, it’s a shame they can’t keep it flowing. And why that colour? Distinctly unimpressed.
October 18th – against the odds (and it has to be said, against the forecast) the great sunsets continue. Battling a westerly wind on the way home, I’d left the train at Shenstone. Winching myself along Lynn Lane and past Fighting Cocks, the sky grew ever more beautiful. I didn’t mind the wind as long as I had views like this. Magical.
May 22nd – A wind that wouldn’t take no for an answer, and far too much work to do. A short evening social ride up to Shire Oak Park – a former quarry – was in order. I haven’t been here for at least 12 months. I’m always shocked at how wooded and green it now is, when I was a kid it was a barren sand-hole, long since abandoned by it’s operators. Sad to see that with the dry spring the pools have dried up.
May 2nd – another beautiful day made difficult by a rapacious wind. A ride out through Stonnall and Shenstone to Canwell, Hints and Hopwas was very hard going indeed. I found plenty of opportunities to stop, for when I did, it was the only time that the sun’s warmth could be felt. This unusual view of Stonnall was taken from the corner of Stonnall churchyard, an available vista I’d not spotted previously.
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